Glenelg coach Mark Stone discusses Crows, mid-season draft and Billy Stretch
Glenelg coach Mark Stone said he never applied for the Adelaide Crows job, suggests the mid-season draft can be a positive and who the club is targeting in the off-season.
Local Footy
Don't miss out on the headlines from Local Footy. Followed categories will be added to My News.
- Rule changes coming to the SANFL in 2020
- Prizes, discounts, freebies: check out the latest subscriber rewards
GLENELG premiership mentor Mark Stone shut down any suggestion he went for a position at the Adelaide Crows after he re-signed until 2022.
Speaking to Adam Cooney and Andrew Hayes on SEN 1629 on Monday morning, Stone said he was pleased to re-sign with the Tigers and said he was never chasing anything outside of the club.
“I’m really pleased,” he said.
“It didn’t take that long, it was just a process that the family and I went away for eight or nine days after the grand final.
Stream over 50 sports Live & On-Demand with KAYO SPORTS on your TV, computer, mobile or tablet. Just $25/month, no lock-in contract. Get your 14-day free trial and start streaming instantly >
“When we got back, I sat down with the club and both parties were on the same page … we were happy to extend and have some continuity.”
However, he confirmed he never went for a Crows gig.
“I treat it as a compliment if people are putting your name out there,” he said.
“The important thing is to let the people around you and those important know that it is speculation and that I’m not running around chasing other positions.
“The Glenelg people knew all along it was speculation, as did my family, but I just treat it as a compliment.”
The SANFL introduced a number of new rule changes to fall in line with the AFL, and Stone said some will be an improvement.
“We’ve had the 6-6-6 this year, so that doesn’t change,” he said.
“Really what changes is you get a warning, whereas last year if you breached it, you immediately get a free kick paid against you.
“The extra player will also be really good for the competition.
“I think the biggest impact that has if you lose a player early to injury, it’s very hard to manage rotations with just two on the bench.
“It’s a positive move from the league.”
The SANFL also has one rule different from the AFL, with the last disposal out of bounds rule not present in the national competition.
However, the Glenelg coach believes the same rules should run from the top to the bottom.
“My personal view is that I think it should align all the way down, but the SANFL really likes that rule,” he said.
MORE NEWS
Smyth to remain at Lions despite Crows calling
Inside Eddie’s Adelaide farewell
“We play that and the AFL don’t, I don’t mind the rule.
“I think for players who are going from one comp to the other, there’s that adjustment there.
“The one part of that rule that irks me a bit in our competition, when you go inside 50 and the kicker misses the target, and the ball goes out of bounds, the other team gets the ball.
“But, it’s one of those things that both of the teams are dealt with the same card.”
In 2020, the SANFL is again expected to feed the AFL mid-season draft, but Stone said it can have some positives.
“I think it’s (mid-season draft) here to stay, we’re just a piece of that puzzle,” he said.
“You do get an inkling and players have to nominate for it, and if they get told if they’ve got interest.
“What it does, it opens your eyes that you’re constantly looking for depth, and we lost Lachie Hosie last year and still managed to win the flag.
“I think now we’re going to get some financial compensation for the draftees, and that’s good as it gets some clash to replace them at the end of the year.
“I think it’s good that players get an opportunity and state level clubs become more of a destination league.”
Stone confirmed the club has lost some players from its premiership side, notably Jesse White to retirement and Chris Curran to the Riverland.
However, he said the Tigers are also in discussions to bring back former player Billy Stretch, who was cut by Melbourne in October.
“There’s always going to be that natural turnover of players,” he said.
“The difficult thing with us is the unknown of the draft … we obviously think we’ll lose Will Gould and then there’s ones you’re not sure about like Luke Partington and Brad Close.
“There’s probably a few in that boat, and there’s a few players looking for opportunities elsewhere.
“Our priority as a philosophy is to bring back our own, any that are delisted, we’ll be prioritising to bring home.
“We’re talking to Billy (Stretch) now, he’s a terrific young man with a good head on his shoulders, he’s one of those guys who could come back in and get picked up by an AFL club again.”
The Tigers will return to training in early December.